Environmental Attitudes in Developing Countries in Light of COVID-19

Abstract

Environmental attitudes have the potential to affect environmental behaviors, which in turn can affect action toward current and future global environmental targets. Recent large-scale surveys find that developing countries, which account for most of the growth in greenhouse gas emissions, have high levels of pro-environmental attitudes. Respondents from developing countries state that they perceive climate change as a major global threat, that climate change directly influences their voting decisions, and that they consider climate change as big a risk as COVID-19. Respondents from developing countries with lower per capita emissions, more educated respondents, and those who have been exposed to extreme weather events tend to have more pro-environmental attitudes. However, high levels of pro-environmental attitudes do not translate into high levels of environmental performance for developing countries, as measured by a comprehensive environmental performance index. Respondents report changes in individual actions to limit their effect on climate change but tend to focus on easier behavioral changes that have a relatively low environmental impact.